Brainstorming

I've been thinking a bit lately about constructing a system using cards instead of dice. I know it's been done before, but mainly with tarot cards, which I don't have and don't know how to use.

I'd like to have task resolution take place through hands of poker. Not sure exactly how it would play out, but I have a few ideas on what i would like it to accomplish. I'd like the damage/margin of success to be accomplished through the bidding phase of a poker hand. I'd also like at least some of the experience points to be given out via winning those bids. Any ideas on how this could be handled?

I don't know exactly what setting this system would be most ideal for supporting, but it would have to involve some sort of inter-party tension, since I'd like to include the character creation idea I pitched for Josh's supers game. Kind of keeping with the bidding idea.

Obviously, none of this would work well on-line at all. Fortunately, I'll be back in Mass soon. In fact, I'll be getting in the car tomorrow morning, and reach Pittsfield on the third, then Woburn on the sixth. This is a permanent move. I'm done with AZ. Shaking the dust off my feet and all.

So, lets brainstorm, and then arrange for an actual trial run in meat-space in the near future.

Day One/Tuesday PM – Awaiting an Answer

Most of the citizens have retired to their homes, some attempt to continue their daily errands but to no avail, a number of shops in the town are open but are mostly vacant. Of those that have departed the grizzly scene from this morning a crowd of them have made their way to 6 Sides, the local bar, and are quietly consuming their drinks and discussing today’s events in hushed tones, no one wants to be the one to speak too loudly of the likely injuries dealt to the first responders.

For the first few hours following the crash, sirens echoed back-and-forth across the city of Kenmare, but now the streets are mostly silent, the skyline to the south-east glows and flickers from the flames that have proved themselves difficult, at best, to extinguish and while the wind is still, the tang of melted plastics and scorched metals permeate the air.



Missy Trenton, one of the bartenders and part-time substitute teacher used the phone earlier, for those that noticed, and whenever her sister, Brenda, arrives she looks grateful for the support. A few of the local farmers have been near the back getting full use out of the three dartboards that line the wall and Missy warns Brenda that they’ve been getting more and more animated as the hours tick by...

Day One/Tuesday AM - The Trainwreck

The clocks of Kenmare, North Dakota silently tick onward to the early hours of Tuesday morning, it is early Spring and a good deal of the earth still lays covered in slowly-melting drifts of snow deposited over the turbulent and frigid winter months.

As the citizens of this little town begin to shake themselves from the embrace of sleep, unbeknownst to them, a train on a southeastern heading has recently departed from the stockyards of Portal, ND, its final destination unknown.

Kenmare’s clocks roll past nine as an ear-splitting screech blasts through the hamlet; the gut-twisting sound of warping steel accompanies a myriad of pops set in quick succession as rivets rend themselves free from their moorings.



Mere moments tick by before the whirl of sirens pierce the deafened silence, those citizens who have left the warmth of their homes to determine the source of the cacophonous noise can make out two faint plumes of white smoke gently billowing skyward as the firefighters blow past, their lights flashing, Lt. James Kurtz follows behind in the department’s car.

Small-town living

Kenmare's population is a measly 1,080 - which means even on a slow day, you're bound to run into everyone you know. Please take a few minutes to post below, reintroducing yourself to your fellow Kenmarians.

Please include your name, your occupation, and what would be known about you (don't forget, small towns have a way of spreading rumors.) As always, I'll be happy to moderate if needed.

Player Application

So who wants to play a game? Just at the moment we've got a total of three games going, though only two have actually gotten very far, and another game in the works. Join us.

Now that we've started, we'll keep this as a place to vote for future games and brainstorm game ideas.

So what might people want to play in the future? Ideas so far are as follows:







1) oWoD, Mage is in the works, but Vampire is always a possibility .
2) Generic modern occult investigation, growing in whatever directions it may, regardless of the repercussions to sanity.
3) Shadowrun.
4) Ars Magica. The 4th edition is available for free online.
5) The Farm. Horrifying, but it seems like it would be amazing.
6) The Lost Room. It'll blow your mind.
7) The Road not Taken, or possibly the $200 hyper-drive from Anywhere but Here. Really sweet sci-fi.

Who's Interested in a New Game?

... yeah, yeah - I know there's that other game of mine. But that's on an extended Hiatus, getting college credit for the archeology work it's been doing in Namibia.

Anyhow, I know the idea of a supernatural-styled game has been bounced around for a bit? Is anyone interested in possibly getting into a "World of Darkness"-type game. I've been missing the activity on this board, and I'm partially responsible.


So, who is game? I'd be happy to entertain questions in the "actions" section beneath this post.

Lecture on the Illithid

Professor Bleak is at it again, this time on one of the great scourges of the Planes, and also one of its greater trading empires.

"The Illithid are scary people. Some might argue that they aren't even people at all. Lets face it: if your primary sustenance is the mental energy of intelligent creatures, you just might not be a person.

"That said, you might have to deal with them at some point in a way that doesn't end with you munching calamari.

"First off, what are the Illithid? They're usually between six and seven feet tall, bipedal, with bilateral symmetry. Two arms, purplish or pinkish coloring, though other skin tones occur, and somewhere between two and twelve tentacles sticking out of the bottoms of their faces, where everyone else has a nose and mouth. They have natural psionic abilities. They can read your mind a bit unless you've warded it, and they can send thoughts to you no matter what. They can also peal the skin off your face with their brains.

"Yes, question? You in the back? Why, if they're so powerful, aren't they in charge somewhere? Well, first off, they are in some places. Second, they were, for a very long time. And third, cause everyone pretty much hates them.

"They eat brains, and minds. They aren't called mind flayers just cause it sounds snappy. Really, if they get you helpless, they can eat bits of your mind. That's their main food. Occasionally they actually need protein, and then they eat something's brain. Usually something intelligent. Their slaves, and they keep lots of them whenever they can, are never in good shape, and never secure in their lives. None of this leads to them playing nice with anyone else.

"But, yeah, they're powerful. They rule some entire worlds, and chunks of others. They've got a few strongholds out in the Astral Plane, although those ones mostly just hang out and beat off attacks from Gith. Everyone hates the illithid, but the gith have made a religion out of it.

"Good reason, too. The illithid used to have an empire that pretty much spanned everywhere. All the Planes, most of the Prime Material worlds, everything under the boot heel of the illithid. The gith were their slaves. It took a long time, but the illithid empire fell, and the gith have been trying to exterminate them ever since. Of course, the illithid still love gith slaves, when they can get their tentacles on them. See, the gith were bred to be the perfect illithid food.

"Question? Bred from what? Okay. Bred from humans. Humans are, probably, best as we can tell, the base stock for most everything. Some things evolved naturally, like orcs and elves, and somethings took some outside intervention, like lizard men, and somethings are the result of selective breeding, like gith, but one way or another, it's all about the humans. Illithid seem to be the only other independent intelligent race, and they eat your brains. Gods aren't really natural, so they don't count.

"Where was I?

"Hmm... Oh! Peeling the skin off your face. Right. The illithid are also capable of powerful magic, but think about the implications. Magic is fueled by a particular type of energy, and it's the same type that lets you think. Illithid eat that energy, which means they don't produce it naturally and can't draw it from other Planes, like we can. If they want to do magic, they have to have food near to hand. If you have to fight an illithid, you might be able to outlast him, if he isn't close enough to eat you. On the plus side, once the energy is formed into a magical effect, they can't eat it. So, they won't munch the fireball you throw at them.

"Of course, with all that slave labor, they've got lots of stuff to sell, and since they also eat the source of that labor, they buy a lot of things too. So killing them isn't always best."

What's That Smell?

Several hours after breakfast, Varian finally works up the courage to go back into his room.

Twice-dead zombie mice don't smell good.

After a bit of searching, Varian finds them under a stack of papers he had been grading for the beginning illusion classes. How'd they get there? And, is that really all of them? Time, and airing out the room, will tell.

Next on the list of things to do: talk to Loannae.

The Dragon Room

Almost the entire west wall is made of stained glass windows in this room. Each of these painstakingly detailed pieces of art show dragons battling each other or brining terror to a human community. The very center window, however, does not allot any light through. It is almost as though someone built a wall behind this window, though no doubt it would have looked beautiful if light shone through it. This window depicts two dragons warring as burning human flee below. The centerpiece of this window is a piece of black glass, cut in the shape of an eclipsed sun.
The eastern and northern sides of this room house cased weapons and armor, decorated with dragon artwork. Most of it seems very well crafted, and are probably quite valuable.

The Library

Harrow walk directly to the library, takes a seat, and begins to flip through aged tomes. He barley seems to register the world around him as his withered hand turns page after page, quickly scanning the contents. On the other side of this large room is the Darkonian gentleman, who seems to be examining a bookshelf, just casually browsing through the titles. His two men stand guard around him as he picks up a book, flips through a page or two, then puts it back down. The artwork on these walls depicts a caravan of warriors, going off to some adventure or another.

Arachnophobia

The Sign of the Fallen Obelisk is subdued at the moment. People drinking, people eating, people talking.

But wait, what is Fergus doing here? Walking up the stairs.

Why? To get to the attic.

What's he doing in the attic? Stomping spider eggs.

Why would he do such a thing? I'm sure I don't know.

The Quest for Eternity, The Invitations

You have been courteously invited to the manor of Lord Edward Terny Theone III, for the reading of the late Lord’s will and last requests. A fine dinner will be provided for you, and we look forward to your arrival. Please bring this invitation, as access will be denied without it.

That was all that the note said. The late Lord Theone, the words seem difficult to believe at first, and perhaps even now you still refuse to accept their truthfulness. Certainly, Theone’s obsession about immortality may have seemed mad at the time, but if any man had the resolve and the resources to discover a means to cheat death, it was Theone. Especially the resources, that man was perhaps as rich as they come, without actually being royalty. And tonight, perhaps there is a slice of those riches for you in that will. If nothing else, does that not deserve your attention?

Perhaps not, you think as you force your way through the mud and the rain, walking uphill to Theone’s manor. Nevertheless, you reach the door where the elderly butler greets you. He asks for your invitation and your name, and as you give him these things he checks you off of a guest list. He gestures inside, and you step in, grateful to be out of the rain.

The dining hall is exactly as Theone left it. Paintings of great battles are on all four walls, marble busts of long dead men and woman sit within glass cases and the table has enough seats to serve a small army. You take your seats, and are understandable cautious of those around you. Other men and women either trickle in, or have already been seated, depending on the time of your arrival, and you cannot help but to size them up.

Your eyes fly to the most flamboyant figure in the room, a Mulan woman of Hazlan. Her head is ritualistically shaved, and her entire body is tattooed, as is the custom for the Mulan. It takes only a moment for you to recognize her, and you gasp to be in the presence of royalty. You recognize her from countless paintings and descriptions, Eleni, heir to Hazlik the Red Wizard, lord of Hazlan. It seems that Theone had more powerful friends than you imagined.

The next guest you can barely stop yourself from cringing from, a bearded elderly man dressed in a soldier’s uniform. However, you only note these things after noticing that the entire right side of his face is scarred and deformed, along with his right arm. His eye is still there, and appears to function, but the wound has taken a terrible price. His right eye is almost decaying, has turned yellow and has become overrun with red.

A scholarly, attractive woman is next, dressed in far more modest clothing than the other guests. She wears a wooden holy symbol and holds a journal in her hands. She cannot be more than twenty years old, and she seems naïve for lack of a better word. Her eyes constantly jump from one guest to another, as though they could answer some question for her.

Then we have what appears to be a gentleman from Darkon, wearing a golden chain, complete with two guards, each carrying a walking stick. The gentleman keeps his right hand pressed against his chest, and occasionally gestures to one of his guards to come closer, to whisper something into the man’s ear, only for all three to burst into laughter.

You gasp, the next man, perhaps only eighteen, is the spitting image of Lord Theone. For a moment you even believe that he is the same Lord, but catch yourself. This young man has subtle, but important, differences; slightly different shade of brown hair, blue eyes instead of green, smaller build. No, he is not Theone. But he’s darn close.

A man covered in furs is the last to enter. He simply sits down, only grunting as he passes. When the food is served, he digs in, caring not for manners or subtlety. This man was hungry, and cares for little else as of the moment.

The food is brought out, and it all looks quite good. Breads, soup, cakes, wine, just as extravagant as when Theone lived here. You may want to introduce your characters now, whenever the butler, who has introduced himself as “Christian Daryl, at your service,” refuses to answer any questions about Theone or the will “until all of my guests are properly fed and comfortable.” If you wish to make an action now, or contradict an assumed action that I have put in this scene, including attending the dinner in the first place, go right ahead.

Leaving, on a Weird Plane

Ionjae, Canas, Ruzakeel, and Uzman gathered near the gate to Sigil to leave for Mechanus. Why? That, it seems, would depend on who you asked.

Let the Stat Wars Begin!

Okay, I’m gonna start the auctions now. In an ideal world, I would do each stat individually. However, seeing as this is a play by post, and considering the time that it would take to do all four, I’m gonna run all five auctions at once. Here’s the run down of the stats.

Strength:

Okay guys, this is the most important stat. Not only does it handle close hand-to-hand combat, martial arts and feats of physical power, it deals with how well you can take a blow. I know what you’re thinking, shouldn’t that last past be in endurance? Well, no, strength gives you a layer of muscle, to absorb punches. So, not only are you dealing more damage, you’re taking less.

Endurance:

Easily the most important stat. In any other stat, if the contest is even close, you can turn it into an endurance battle and outlast your opponent. In a wrestling match? Just fight defensively and have your opponent wear himself down. Endurance is how long you can keep going, your overall energy, how long you can stay awake, your resistance to disease and how long it takes for you to heal.

Psyche:

Pay attention to this one, it’s the most important stat out there. This is your mind, how willful you are, and how powerful your magic is. A must for spellcasters, and anyone who thinks that he may end up in a psyche battle.

Warfare:

A favorite all around, this is the most important stat. This shows how good you are with a weapon and your sense of strategy. High warfare people are difficult to take by surprise, because they tend to look over the entire room, expecting and anticipating attacks from all angles. The most skilled are even impossible to take by surprise while invisible, they can see you coming based on what they would do in that situation.

Secret Auction:
???
It’s a secret. I’m not tellin’ you. Bid and find out!

So, basically the way that this is going to work is that you guys list off your starting bids. Those points are spent, gone, and invested into these stats. Then you guys try to outbid each other, with the goal of getting to the top. Now, if anyone has any plans of saving their points, and just matching someone who’s higher than you guys after the bidding, that sort of thing doesn’t work. You can only match the highest person that there is in your group to start, and even then you are just a little bit weaker than he is. Now, the exception is the secret auction, only the winner needs to pay. If you are done with a stat, please indicate that in some way so I know when to end the bids.

If you have any questions, feel free to ask them, but the bidding war is officially open now.

Powers

Lycanthrope, Afflicted: You were bitten by some shapeshifting monstrosity, now you must bear its curse. You have a beast within you, a creature of bloodlust, hate and destruction that would like nothing more than to run wild and kill all that stands in its path. Normally, you are in control, however some trigger gives the creature within you the boost it needs to shift the balance of power in its favor, if only for a little while. Keep in mind that in Ravenloft, this need not be the full moon. It could be the scent of a specific flower, the tides, a specific lunar phase, a certain emotional state, or almost anything else that you can imagine. However, full moon tends to be the norm. Also, in Ravenloft these changes are very painful, so a high endurance is advised for this power. 30 points

Lycanthrope, Natural: What afflicted lycanthropes achieved through accident, you were born with. Through your bloodline, the souls of the beast and the man have merged, until there is no difference. You are not a man, you are not a beast, you are both, and the distinction simply does not exist for you. However, this comes with a small curse: A hunger for raw flesh from any creature, that you must sate daily. 45 points

Ghost Sight: You are constantly haunted with a ghostly sight. You see the abnormal as though it were completely natural and normal, though this may lead others to believe that you are simply insane. This makes you uniquely suited to fight the forces of darkness, as their most valuable power, that of deception, is robbed from them. Put simply, spirits, ghosts and creatures that have special abilities that make you overlook them are powerless to hide themselves from you. This does not include creatures that physically change, such as lycanthropes, and some creatures may be too powerful for you to see through their cloaks. 10 points

Spellcasting: Pick a type, divine or arcane. This allows you access to spells from that area, and gives you the ability to cast them. However, in this version of the game, spellcasting takes a toll on you, and is limited by your psyche. Put simply, the more powerful the effect, the more psyche points you “lose” until you rest, and as you lose them you become increasingly tired. Also, you start the game with a limited number of known spells, if you are an arcane spellcaster. 20 points

Royal Title: You are considered a lord by whatever creature rules that domain in which you were born. This gives you a certain amount of leverage and influence, and you have friends in high places. But be warned, a Darkonian lord will find himself most unwelcome in Barovia, and vice versa. Also, titles are often handed out in exchange for favors, it is a common joke that nobles can outnumber peasants in some domains. As such, while you are considered royalty, you may not have a surplus of gold, and if your family is rich, then I will need a reason why it is not conveniently accessed by you at this point. 10 points

Allied with the Vistani: Somewhere along the line, you helped a vistani, and now the rest view you with, if nothing else, moderate tolerance. They may listen to your requests, and even grant them if it is convenient. However, the vistani are known for having a swaying attitude, so you would do well not to abuse this arrangement with them. You must have a way of identifying yourself when dealing with the vistani to gain the benefit of this power, usually a vistani necklace or ring that you wear. 20 points.

Half-Vistani: You can only take this if you are human. One of your parents was a Giorgio, or non-vistani, where the other was one of these gypsies. In addition to knowing the vistani’s secret language, you may have a talent for fortune-telling. You start with a tool, a deck of vistani cards, some bone dice, or something to that effect, and you can tell fortunes. Be warned though, males with the power of precognition are shunned, or killed, by the vistani. Also, everyone tends to shun half-vistani, they are known for bringing trouble to the Giorgio and are seen as having “watered-down blood” by the vistani. 10 points.

Telepathy: You can communicate telepathically with anyone that you meet eye contact with, within 30 feet of you. If you wish, you can push, attack their mind, which will result in a psyche battle. Depending on the respective Psyches of the combatants, the winner can do different things, freeze the loser, “mindrape” him (stealing information) or, if he is much more powerful, control him like a puppet for a little while. 30 points

Darklord’s Favor: Certainly a risky power at best, you have some personal contact with one of the true lords of this world. If this is a blessing or a curse is often argued, certainly Lord Azalin’s favor could be useful, but he most always demands some service in exchange. Also, Darklords tend to check up on their favorite…pets I suppose would be the best description. 10 points

Now, don’t go buying your powers just yet, there are two points that I’d like to make. First, you are not restricted to these powers, these are just to get you started. You may invent powers and submit them to me, and I’ll tell you if you can buy them, and how much they cost. However, I'd like to say that I'm not allowing vampires. Next, buying powers comes after the auction, a post that will be up shortly.

Opinions or Thoughts Anyone?

Alright, so here’s the deal. It would appear that “The Eternal Wars” was a much cooler idea in theory than in practice. To be honest politics and manipulation of armies doesn’t make for that fun of an RPG, at least not the way I was running it. So I would like to dub “The Eternal Wars” to be an officially failed experiment. I still think that it was worth the effort, but to be honest it just wasn’t working. Thanks for your patience on this matter, and all of you effort to keep it working.

That being said, I still can Game Master something on this site, if there is any call for me to do so. Here are the games that I have run before, and have been met with positive feedback. However, if you feel that there are already enough games going, that works too, I have no preference either way.

Amber: An infinite number of worlds, with two centers of power at opposite ends of the universe. Betraying family members, constantly changing rules of reality, the possibilities are literally endless. Based on “The Chronicles of Amber” series of books, this diceless role-playing game allows one to live out his wildest fantasies, fight his greatest nightmares, and to play for the ultimate prize: to be named next in line for the throne of Amber, the one true city. Will you be a vicious warrior, a cunning sorcerer, a friend, an enemy? Will you chose the powers of chaos or order, which Amberites will you ally yourself with?

Ravenloft: A land of mists, of curses, of imprisoned, doomed lords of darkness. Elementals made of blood, vampires of more breeds than there are races of humanoids, you do not fight in Ravenloft to bring forth the candle of goodness, you fight to keep the darkness at bay, if only briefly. Ravenloft is the land where a child’s fears become incarnate, where your evil deeds can grant you great power, for a price. Nothing is free in Ravenloft, it is not for nothing that it is called The Demiplane of Dread.

Masque of The Red Death: 1890s, Gothic Earth. Pretty much like how our world was back then, with a few changes. Frankenstein was a real man, and his creation still plagues this earth, James Moriarty and Sherlock Holmes manage their respective sides of the law, and you never know where a monster might be. Magic is rare on Gothic Earth, and hard to eek out of the web of power that it comes from. In Gothic Earth, one cannot simply kill his opponents, claiming that he was a werewolf or a vampire. This is the civilized times, when such nonsense has been put behind any decent society. That is, of course, until the moon turns full, and creatures haunt the night, unhindered by mortal laws. Certainly a change of pace from the normal middle-ages style of game play.

I am also familiar with the “Stormbringer” game, though I have never used it before, and do not consider myself proficient with it. I can also probably pick up any system or game style presented to me. So, has there been anything that you’ve been itching to play lately? If so, feel free to bring it up here.

Family Matters

Varian stepped off of the express and gave the first smile that had not originated in vice since arriving in Sigil. He let the desert sun beat against his face, savoring the feel of the sand under his boots. Eventually, he stepped towards the stone city, taking in the smells that he had missed so much. After sampling a variety of delicacies being hawked by the street vendors, Varian set out on his task.

It took Varian a while to track down his father. The family estate had been sold at auction to cover his debts. The new occupants neither knew nor cared what had befallen the previous ones. The neighbors wouldn't talk about anyone so disgraced.

The courts had records of the proceedings. A modest bribe got a clerk to look them up for Varian. Varian's father, Clarion, had been convicted of insolvency, and his debt had been purchased by a nearby debt farm. Varian hired a coach and rode out to find the man.

He was working in a field, bent over a hoe, shin deep in manure. Shameful.

“Nice place.” Varian said, with more than a hint of sarcasm. He gave a little swish of his velvet cape and nudged a lump of manure farther from his polished boot with his cane, hoping to leave an impression of the small fortune that he had amassed. “How’s it going out here?” Varian asked, obviously not caring. “I’m making a comeback father. I need your signet ring. Where is it? Did you hide it, keep it, was it taken like everything else?”

"You little bastard. You abandoned your mother and me to this," he gestured around himself, taking in the manured field of the debtors' farm. "We had a little misunderstanding and you bailed. We needed you. Where have you been the last four years? And now you show up asking, no demanding, to be given our signet ring? You're asking to be declared head of the family, and you know it."

"I've been at school, father. I only recently had any resources with which to help you. Now I am in a position to elevate our family back to the status it once held, and I want that fact recognized."

Clarion knew that Varian could bring him to court and demand his rights. Their plutocracy would easily side with the rich scion rather than the debtor who had been too poor to pay the bribes to escape his flogging for slave dealing.

"Fine, you can have it. Don't even ask where I had to conceal it to keep it from being sold along with the rest of our holdings. I'll tell you where it's hidden when you've paid my debts and gotten me out of this hellhole."

"What about mom?"

"What about her? She got out of here a month after our debts were bought. One of the district judges re-examined our case and reapportioned our debt. I, it seems, owed much more than she did. He bought her's, and now she works off her debt, and probably her gratitude, in his household. I think he calls her a maid, or something. Judge Beltisammo, if you want to look up the faithless wench. So she's out of the family anyway, and good riddance.

"So, do we have a deal?"

Half the Man He Used to Be

Loannae and Ionjae are eating lunch together, at her insistence. Not surprisingly, the cafeteria food is only mediocre.

"I met a guy the other day."

"Oh? I thought you weren't having anything to do with men since you had that vision about the last one."

"No, I don't mean it like that. You have to go talk to him."

"Why? I have homework. Already."

"It's about Aberdal. Greedo doesn't know who he is, but he told me something that I think we need to check out. Go talk to him."

"The professors couldn't find anything. Is this for real?"

"My skills say yes."

"All right. Where do I find this Greedo?"

"He usually hangs out in a bar called the Sign of the Fallen Obelisk. It's in Sigil."

This Apparatus Must Be Unearthed

"Welcome back, Canas," Sven, the dwarven bookseller says. "I have something you might be interested in."

"What is it? Any books matching my requests?"

"No, nothing on those books. Not a book at all, actually. I don't normally carry this sort of thing, but I was sure you'd be interested." He leads Canas through the stacks and to a table littered with loose sheets of paper and smudged broadsheets. "Behold!"

Canas stares. "What is it?"

"I have no idea. The modron who sold it to me wouldn't say. Do you want it?"

Super Cool

So I was looking at this, and I've decided that steampunk is the coolest thing ever. Not precisely connected to any game, although I'll be seeing where I can incorporate more steampunk elements into Sigil and its environs, but I thought you all might be interested. Check out the new link in the sidebar.

Intro to the Study of Magic: An Introductory Lecture

If I may go back a few days chronologically, I would like to present, for your edification and enjoyment, Professor Bleak of the School of Enchantment.

"Magic is many things, but even you all know that. You're here to learn things you don't know, not thinks you do.

"Sorry. Bad start. Let's try again.

"This brief introductory talk will give you an overview of what you'll be working on for the rest of the term with your work groups. Basically, I'm going to expand on a few points in the syllabus.

"Magic can be broken down into three broad categories, and several sub-categories.

"First, is innate magic. It's written right there on your syllabus, so you know it's real. Many creatures have some innate ability to preform magical feats. A basilisk can turn you to stone, a phase spider can shift it's planar position. Things like that are very interesting, but not terribly useful. You can't do them, at least not the way they can. It's not innate for you. We'll be studying a bit of that, partly to familiarize you with some of the more interesting or dangerous creatures you hopefully haven't yet encountered in the wild, and partly to get you started thinking how you could overcome the failings of your limited natures and achieve these feats despite yourselves. Just for a few weeks though; we have more important things to do.

"Next, we'll cover spells. Technical term, that. I know lots of people talk about spells, like that's what wizards do, but it isn't. The chances are, you'll never create a new spell no matter how long you live. Spells are universal magic. A spell is a great work, a massive achievement. Most of them started off as state secrets, but once they're out, they don't stay secret long. Case in point: the common tongue. Common isn't actually a language at all. No one speaks Common. Bet you didn't know that. Some great wizard, so long ago that we don't know his name, or even what race he was, developed a spell to be able to understand what other folks were saying. Now, rather than just do it each time, he made it a real full blown spell, probably so he could let his king's spies do it. Of course, by now, everyone knows it so fully that no one even knows they know it. You all do it; it's that little pop in your ears and gulp in your throat. Some languages are immune now, but that's magic too. Mostly, you just hear accents. Incredible. You'll never be that good, but read up about it. Never hurts to know what magic is available to the whole universe. Couple of weeks there too.

"Finally, the bulk of what wizards actually do. We'll do a flying overview of the sort of effects you can manage with the different schools of magic. Not too much detail, since that's also the subject matter of the rest of your time at this academy, but you've got to start somewhere, right? We'll do a bit of basic theory, like talking about the Astral and Ethereal Planes. Hint, they're where magic comes from and how it gets places. Actually, more theory than practice, since, like I said, the rest of it is the rest of all your classes. Theory will bore you out of your skulls, unless you're one of the four or five students a year that actually gets off on that stuff. If so, come talk to me and I'll get you into my seminar next term.

"So there you go. That's what's going to eat up most of your first term. Do well though; this is what the separate schools look at when considering you for admission. No specialization means no upper level classes, and that means you'll be crippled in the actual practice of magic when you get out of here. Good luck."

Scene 16: William the Conqueror

William needs to win a fight.

Er, that is, a half-ogre who will, at the time, look like William, needs to look sure to lose a fight, and then win.

Actually, neither William nor the half-ogre need much of anything, but Varian really needs all of that to happen, or some people who have long since fallen out of the habit of being anything that could be accidentally construed as nice will discover that they have reason to be displeased with him.

Come along and see what happens.

Scene 15: the Reprise of Gurg

Ionjae and Varien walk into Gurg's office. The little goblin blinks up at them from behind a pile of papers on his desk.

"What do you want?"

"We need a job." Varien sits down in one of the two chairs in front of Gurg's desk and puts his booted feet up.

"Get you feet off my desk. Just because I'm a goblin doesn't mean I can read muddy papers. And why do you need a job? Have you managed to blow through the money I already paid you so soon? Or are you just bored?"

Ionjae offers "We need books, supplies, that sort of thing. You helped us out so well with tuition, we thought..."

"You're bored. I know you don't need the money. You made out just fine as a bookie today," pointing at Varien, "and you went off on a field trip and seemed far happier than you should have been given how roughed up you looked. I think you're both just fine for money.

"No, what you lack is ambition. Go find your own way in the world. For Ao's sake, it isn't even the second week of school, and you think I'm here to entertain you? Go kill Pun-Pun, or sabotage the Great Factory, or just ride the Planar Express for a while, or, failing that, try actually studying."

He starts sorting through the papers dislodged by Varien's feet as the two of them stare at him. He looks up. "Still here? Remember the fiasco with the gargoyles last year? We lost eight gargoyles. They'd been with the school for over seven hundred years. Make sure that Canas kid replaces them, and gets the others back to work, and maybe I'll find you something fun."

Memo: For Immediate Release - Quality Alterations

A quick note before this game continues, I have been made aware of a typo existing within the Qualities list.

The following changes take place immediately:
 Quirks -
  Low Self-Image has been changed from -4 to -3.

 Gifts
  Self-Confident has been changed from +4 to +2

If you find that you have chosen either of these qualities and would like to change them now, you may.

In addition, the following Quirks have been added to the Quality list on behalf of one of the players. These are fare game if you choose to alter your character.
 Quirks -
  Dark Fate has been added
  Dark Secret has been added
  Sickness has been added

Chapter I: In the Beginning...

As noted in each of your histories, you have all found yourselves intrigued by the promises of “free” money not to mention a good deal of aid directed towards your studies at Century City University. The story begins a few weeks after you have each submitted your applications for the study.

---

It is early Monday morning, your timepiece displays 7:30 AM, and depending on your class schedules, you phone rings, waking you from a deep slumber or catching you just as you are about to leave for class.

Answering the phone, you hear a brief pause of silence before a grainy recording of a woman’s voice begins by congratulating you on behalf of Amalgamated Radiational Medical Research & Development division of Amalgamated Industries, Incorporated, as well as Century City University’s Wendi Mason, Collegiate Advisor and Guidance Councilor.

The woman’s voice continues the research team reviewed your application and found it to be complete and accurate, there will be an informal, yet mandatory seminar held this afternoon at the DeLorean Performance Center; for your continuation in this application process, your attendance is expected as well as required.

Prior to the call’s termination, the voice reminds you that this is an entirely voluntary experiment that you may withdraw from at any time and that it will not reflect negatively on your continued education at CCU.

---

Checking your watch you estimate that you have four and a half hours before the scheduled meeting is to commence, the recording hadn’t mention whether lunch would be provided, although prior to disconnecting, the voice requested you bring your student identification card to verify your identity.

Prelude: Subsection IV - Qualities

Qualities are, for lack of a better term, the icing on the cake in regards to your character. For while there exist only so many base combinations of character builds, the embrace of quirks and gifts can revolutionize even the most “vanilla” of ideas. Let us once again visit upon Ricardo, our sample character and view him from the angle of two very opposed “twists.”

First we will revisit, “Ricardo: the Awesome Sample-Man” this will allow us to familiarize ourselves with his abilities and further unveil his complete choice of skills before applying some of the qualities.

---

Vitals -
Name: Ricardo
Major: Sanskrit

Statistics:
Strength: 14
   Body-building - 3
   Combat: Pugilism - 5
   Combat: Kickboxing - 5
   Run - 1
Dexterity: 12
   Dice Rolling - 7
   Driving - 2
   Tumble - 3
Intelligence: 10
   Linguistics: Ancient Sanskrit - 5
   Research - 5
Spirit: 10
   Concentration - 3
   Meditation - 2
   Philosophy - Eastern - 4
   Public Speaking - 1

---

So without further ado, I unveil a list of qualities to you. Each player is awarded 1 Quality point for each 5 Spirit points (rounded down.) "Quirks" add a Quality point to your Quality pool, as "Gifts" subtract a Quality point from your Quality pool.

You MUST choose a Quirk before you begin playing this game. This is because that no human is perfect in nature, and no character is perfect in design. This immediate quirk does not add to your quality pool in any way, although it's disadvantages do. You can choose up to three Qualities before game-play begins, however your Quality pool cannot go beneath zero.

---

Qualities:

Quirks:

Inferiority Complex

Any roll that requires “Spirit” reduces your die pool by two.

Low Self-Image

Any roll that requires “Spirit” reduces your die pool by three.

Pacifist

While senseless violence shocks modern society, you have made a personal decision to never harm a person.

Bad Vision

Any roll that requires “Vision” reduces your die pool by two.

Blind

Any roll that requires “Vision” fails.

Hard of Hearing

Any roll that requires “Hearing” reduces your die pool by two.

Deaf

Any roll that requires “Hearing” fails.

Awkward

Any roll that requires “Dexterity” reduces your die pool by two.

Maltreated Minority

You belong to a group or posses a trait that an average person will react negatively.

Addiction

For each period of time this addiction is not fed, your “Spirit” die pool is reduced by two.

Dark Fate

You are destined to watch your very dreams and desires turn to ash before you. What does this mean "mechanically" is that "bad luck" follows you and undermines some of your actions. When, where, and how often are moderated by the game master.

Dark Secret

You hold a particular truth within that were it to be revealed, you would most certainly be vilified. Perhaps you were involved in a hit-and-run, beat a homeless person senseless, or drank to much and robbed a convenience store, or perhaps something else. But whatever it is, you dread it's discovery and in so will do what you must to right that wrong, indirectly speaking.

Sickness

Some time in your past, you were exposed to and contracted an incurable disease or "condition." While you show no outward sign of this sickness you incur a negative modifier to all roles requiring "Spirit" if you don't receive the scheduled medication on time.

Qualities:

Gifts:

Gall

Any roll that requires “Spirit” enhances your die pool by one.

Focus

No matter what, you cannot garner more than -2 modifier to a die pool from distractions.

Eidetic Memory

Any roll that requires “Intelligence” enhances your die pool by two.

Self-Confident

Any roll that requires “Spirit” enhances your die pool by two.

Crack Driver

Any roll that requires “Driving” enhances your die pool by two.

Graceful

Any roll that requires “Dexterity” enhances your die pool by two.

Natural Linguist

Any roll that requires a known “Linguistics” enhances your die pool by two, unknown “Linguistics” enhances your die pool by one.

Please note: If there are any Qualities that you wish to add to this list, you can make a comment to this post with the information needed or you may email me directly, either way if I approve of this Quality I will make the post public.

Prelude: Subsection III - Skills (Edit)

Century City Unlimited, will begin with two categories of skills. The first category, more of a catchall, will contain basic skills. These skills are usually non-important and will unlikely appear on a "character sheet," a good example of these skills are "Grooming: Basic", "Communication: Basic", and "Reading/Writing."

The second category contains advanced skills; skills that would take time to learn and master. Since these skills are more specialized than "Grooming: Basic" it should be expected to cost a character to learn them.

---

I originally had proposed the idea of "gambling" for advanced skills, while this would be entertaining and make you feel a closer connection with your character, I can not implement a system like this because in reality humans are likely to have similar interests, and similar abilities. That said, the way that Century City Unlimited handles assigning skills is slightly complicated.

As you recall, in Prelude: Subsection II - Statistics, you submitted your character attributes to me. Each category of statistics; Strength, Dexterity, Intelligence, and Spirit were assigned numbers. To assign a skill, you begin with 1 point per statistical category in each attribute. To explain this a little clearer, let us view a sample submission.

Vitals -
Name: Ricardo
Major: Sanskrit

Statistics:
Strength: 14
Dexterity: 12
Intelligence: 10
Spirit: 10

Explanation
Ricardo has a strength of 14, which means he begins his skill stage with 14 points to assign to strength-based skills. Likewise, he has a score of 10 for spirit, and can only assign 10 points to spirit-based skills.

As soon as you assign a point to a skill you are considered trained or knowledgeable in that skill, it's just that simple. However, the more points you feed into a skill the more often you will succeed when attempting something that pertains to that skill. For example let us refer back to Ricardo and observe what might happen with his skills during a night of studying.

Ricardo chooses to split his Intelligence score evenly between Research and Linguistics: Ancient Sanskrit equaling five a piece. Ricardo finds an antique book in the CCU library, it's written in a very old style of Sanskrit, and it intrigues him enough to spend some time reviewing the writings within.

Ricardo finds a comfy seat at one of the many reading cubes within the library and spends the first half-hour delicately handling the pages, examining the basic flow the writing to determine if he can identify the variance the takes place in some of the lettering. By not rushing and using his reasonable level of Linguistics: Ancient Sanskrit in concert with his skills in Research and the massive collection of writings housed within CCU's computers he is able to determine that the writing originates from the lower nations and seems to date back nearly four thousand years. [Resulting in a +10 to his attempt to uncover more information from this book.]

Where does the +10 modifier come from? Since Ricardo has two skills that can aid him in his research, Research and Linguistics: Ancient Sanskrit he is able to take the full benefit from one (in this case Linguistics: Ancient Sanskrit) and add half (rounded down) of the other skill, resulting in +7. In addition, Ricardo receives a +1 for each of the following situational enhancers; "Peace and Quiet" (from the library), "Comfort" (from the chair), and "Tool Advantage" (from the computer).

---

Skills:

Strength:

Body-building

Climbing

Combat: Pugilism

Combat: Aikido

Combat: Judo

Combat: Jujitsu

Combat: Karate

Combat: Kendo

Combat: Ninjitsu/Tai-Jutsu

Combat: Teng-jutsu

Combat: Zanji Shinjinken-Ryo

Combat: Kickboxing

Gymnastics

Run

Swimming

Dexterity:

Combat: Blades

Combat: Clubs

Combat: Firearms

Combat: Thrown Weapons

Dice Rolling

Dodge

Driving

Safe-Cracking

Surgery: Major

Surgery: Minor

Thief: Pick Locks

Thief: Pick Pockets

Tumble

Intelligence:

Anthropology

Archeology

Assess Mechanical Quality

Astronomy

Balloon Animal Making

Biology

Cartography

Chemical Engineering

Chemistry

Civil Engineering

Computer Engineering

Computer Hacking

Computer Networks

Computer Programming

Ecology

Economics

Electronics

Entomology

First-Aid

Geology

Horticulture

Linguistics: {player's choice}

Lip Reading

Locksmith

Mathematics

Mechanical Engineering

Medicine

Nuclear Chemistry

Nuclear Physics

Paleontology

Physics

Psychology

Research

Zoology

Spirit:

Astrology

Awareness

Begging

Concentration

Fasting

Leadership

Listening

Meditation

Mystic Herbology

Negotiation

Philosophy - Eastern

Philosophy - Western

Public Speaking

Search

Streetwise

Subterfuge

---

If you can think of any additional skills, please submit them via the chat section and I'll quickly add them. Also, if you feel that a skill may be mis-categorized, please let me know and I may reconsider.

Edit:
1 Just a heads up, when you submit your skills to me (either within the comments or via email) could you please categorize them for me. You may submit them in whatever format you want; columns, commas, or whatever - but just make it clear. And remember, if you don't see a skill on the list ask me about it and I'll add it.
2 I've made an addition to the dex skills, anyone interested in adding "Driving" to their character and reworking their dex skills is welcome to.

So you want to be a wizard?

Creating a mage:

Normally, you'd choose a tradition, but not this time. You're all in the Order of Hermes. Different traditions are different approaches to magic. For example, the Cult of Ecstasy tends to reach its magic through drugs, sex, or other ecstatic experiences. More germane to your circumstances is the Order of Hermes. Hermetics approach magic as a thing to be studied and understood, and mastered through sheer willpower. The commonly used terminology of the spheres is theirs, as is the name for the raw stuff of creation, quintessence. Fortunately for the purpose of providing more opportunity to customize your mage, the Order of Hermes is composed of several Houses, each with its own emphasis and slightly different approach. Some houses of note:

House Flambeau - They blow things up, and are the most aggressive combatants in the Ascension War on the traditionalist side.

House Solificati - Alchemists, they seek mystical perfection through both the metaphorical attempt to turn base metal into gold, and through the purification of their own bodies.

House Quaestor - The lawyers and judges of Hermetic law.

House Thig - Mystical technologists, their methodology is very similar to the Order of Reason's, but their rationale is very different.

Additionally, if you know anything about the setting, you should be aware that I'm changing it. The standard Traditions are each their own House, absorbed into the Order of Hermes at various points in history. Basically, either look it up on a fan site, or just tell me what your mage believes about magic, and I'll tell you what you are. Or, actually, what you are aiming to be, since you're all apprentices and not actually members of any house yet. Your tutor is of House Criamon, whose goals are never clear but value enigmas for their role in bringing mystical revelation.

To really make much use of that information, you're going to need to know this. I do apologize, but an awful lot of people find Mage to be a very hard game to wrap their heads around, and I'll admit it can be a bit difficult to explain. Ignore the history on that page, as I'm changing it, and anything it says about the avatar, as I'm throwing that right out.

Okay. To make a character. You need to pick a name, identity, physical description, all the standard character things. I'll want those. They go at the top here. Next you have to prioritize your attributes and your abilities. Pick a primary, secondary, and tertiary, category of each. You get, in addition to the one free dot in each attribute, seven dots to add to your primary category, five to add to your secondary, and three to your tertiary. In abilities you don't get a free dot, but the dots to distribute are 13/9/5. None of those can start higher than three.

Next come the backgrounds. I'm limiting your choices here. Since you're all formal aprentices, you've all got access to at least three points of Library, and possibly as many as five, if you don't take much else. Since you normally have seven points to distribute in backgrounds, you can spread the other four points across a combination of Resources, your personal wealth, Contacts, your sources of information, and Allies, people you know who want to help you out. None of those can go higher than a two. For Contacts and Allies, one point gets you a source of information or an ally of somewhat limited value. For two points you can either get one of slightly more value, or two of limited value. For contacts, tell me what sort of information you can get and how. For allies, tell me something about this person, such as why they help you, how you know them, what they're good for, and who they are.

Next come spheres. You get one point in forces, and five other dots to spread as you like. However, here's the complication. No sphere value can be higher than your arete score, and arete starts by default at one. You can spend freebie points to raise arete up to three, but we haven't gotten there yet. Sort of hold this in mind, and move back and forth once I've explained everything.

Freebie points are last. You get fifteen of them. It'll cost you 5 points for 1 dot of an attribute, 2 for an ability, 7 for an extra dot of a sphere, 1 for a background, 4 for a dot of arete, 1 for an extra dot of willpower (which automatically starts at 5), and 1 point to get 4 points of quintessence. And you can also take flaws and merits to tweak your character a little. There's a big list of them. Find them online, or ask me to email the list if you want them.

Now, what the hell do some of those terms mean? Arete is the degree to which you've come close to a perfect understanding of magic. It maxes out at 10, and you can't start any higher than 3. It's a cap on how powerful your magic can be, and how likely your magic is to work. In game terms, the way other characters would talk about it, it's how well your soul understands the world, and so how powerfully and directly your soul can exert its will upon the world. The spheres divide up what magic can do. Correspondence deals with things over a distance, like scrying or teleportation. Entropy deals with both chance and decay. Prime deals with magic itself. If you want to draw quintessence out of the world, you'll need it, or if you want to do much analysis of magic itself. The rest should be self-explanatory. One dot gets you a basic understanding of the sphere, and an awareness of the things it touches. For example, with time one, you will never need a watch, and with entropy one you can see the likelihood of hitting your bet in a game of craps, as well as be deeply aware of the death of that potted plant over there. Life one would also cover that second one. There is some overlap, so many things can be accomplished in a variety of ways. Two dots lets you make minor changes, or have a deeper awareness. Three dots lets you make a moderate change. Four dots gets you a major change, or a permanent lesser change. Five dots lets you alter reality. Beyond that things get tricky. You probably won't ever get there, but after five dots, life on Earth gets tricky for reasons to be explained soon. First, one more term, quintessence. This is the raw stuff of magic. Quintessence is measurable power, that you can use for your own purposes. It comes in two forms, quintessence, sort of an abstract power, or tass, quintessence tied up in some physical thing, such as vampiric blood, which must be destroyed to free the quintessence. Having some of either variety makes magic easier or gives it more power.

Magic comes in two varieties: coincidental and vulgar. When you see vulgar magic, you know it, and when you see coincidental magic, you don't, unless you're looking with magic. Coincidental magic is easy, usually. You want to roll snake eyes? Not a problem, since dice can easily do that without magical intervention. You want to change the roll of the dice after they've stopped moving? Not so easy, since people will know something happened. You want to throw a fireball? You can do it, but people will know it wasn't natural. There are ways around that limitation, but you have to be careful. Try shooting the car behind your target and making it blow up with magic. Happens all the time in movies; people are likely to believe that it is at least possible. Coincidental magic isn't taxing, and carries no game penalties. Vulgar magic wears you out, since you have to fight against consensual reality, and will carry some penalties. These penalties come in a few different forms. First off, in game, the Order of Reason watches out for this sort of thing. They'll try and do something about it, and that might prove fatal for you. Second, there are metaphysical repercussions. You might get sick, you might get hurt, or spirits might take you away to a realm of punishment. Who knows? Basically, if you're too vulgar, I get free rein to screw you over.

One more thing. Every mage goes through a mystical experience in which he awakens to the magic inherent in the world. Usually this is triggered by a traumatic experience in which the future mage uses his nascent abilities to resolve something. However, it could also be some kind of religious experience. This awakening will shape how you view your magic, and how you are likely to try to use it for a while. I want to know what your awakening was like, and what it did to you. What happened, what did you do, and how did you rationalize it? No one suddenly thinks "Oh yeah, magic is real and I can do it" and comes to an instant understanding of the spheres and metaphysical reality. You will have a better grasp than your original one, because of your study under the Order, but I want to know where you started from. After you give me all that, I'll tell you how the Order found you and what they've had you doing so far.

And there we go. Let me know if anything isn't clear, or if I left anything off. It might be fun to play yourselves, but feel free to ignore that suggestion if you don't like it.

Mage: The Ascension

Very brief intro: Mage is a game of modern magic. Mages live in our world, and no one knows it. They practice their magic, and we don't see it. Belief is power, even in a modern world that doesn't believe. Magic is powerful. You can do almost anything, provided you believe you can. Society doesn't believe you can, and their collective belief is powerful too. Different factions of mages secretly fight to manipulate the belief of the masses, and thus consensual reality. This is the Ascension War. In the war for reality, whose side are you on?

Master Eastman, your tutor, has this to say about affairs:

"These are the dying days of magic, gentlemen. I'm sorry, but it's true. We are still capable of many of the things our mystical forbears were, but we must hide them, lest the massed disbelief of our world tear them, and us, apart.

"Magic is codified belief. That's all there is to it. That one fact is the soul of your education, but it will take you years to internalize it. Right now, you're thinking there has to be more to it than that. I know. I was in your place many years ago. Well, listen up. That's all there is to it.

"We have, through centuries of effort, formulated a system to allow us to more easily manipulate our power. We have the nine spheres: correspondence, entropy, forces, life, matter, mind, prime, spirit, and time. Combined, these nine spheres of power describe all things that can be manipulated through belief. Like I said, it took us a long time to arrive at this system, but now, the Hermetic system is the best there is. So good that even mages of other very ancient traditions tend to use our terminology, even if their practice is very different from ours.

"Still, in the hundreds of years it took us to create our belief structure, the world changed. Our roots reach back into ancient Egypt, ancient Greece, ancient Mesopotamia. Our organizational structure was formed in the late Roman Empire. 476 is a vital date for three reasons. One, the one known even to mundane historians, is that that was the year Rome was conquered by the barbarians.

"It was also the beginning of our greatest flourishing. Rome had provided a stability that had led to a suppression of what has come to be called 'superstition.' This was our first real encounter with the limits of our abilities. Sure, individual practitioners have always had limits, and even groups together had them, but it was noticed that sometimes long standing enchantments would fail, and that some great tasks would take more effort than they had in past attempts. Eventually we learned why. All belief is power, not just ours. Our arrogance has always been our undoing. When the populace trusted the world around them, we had to try harder to bend it to our will. When Rome fell, and the barbarians moved into the old empire, things got easier again.

"There was a third important fact then, but we didn't find out about it for centuries. 476 was the beginning of our end. The barbarians had mages of their own, and their invasion had been aided through magical means. A few very forward thinking mages in the Empire realized what a threat to public safety unfettered magic was, and began to analyze the problem. While we would eventually settle on the goal of Ascension, they would eventually settle on their own goal, Consensual Reality. We now live in Consensual Reality. The war didn't start then, but when it did, they won.

"Well, so what do we do about it now? Ascension is still our goal. The Order of Hermes seeks first for its members, and then for all of humanity, complete subjugation of the world to the individual will through the mechanism of magic. The Order of Reason, some call it the Technocracy, seeks, so they say, the freedom from the vagaries of change and unreliable reality brought about by magic. They've made the most progress; the world is less mutable now than it ever has been before. But just because they won the open battles doesn't mean we have to stop fighting. If we gave up, that would mean no more magic, for us or anybody. That would mean the loss of wonder, and the loss of that great hope that Ascension holds out. And just because the Orders have polite relations doesn't mean we aren't at war. They'll do everything in their power to control you. Remember that.

"Your education will be long and hard, but magic is and will be your reward. Apply your will to the shaping of your belief, your very soul, and you will become masters of the world, this world and all others."

The character sheet is here. Instructions on what to do with it are coming.

Prelude: Subsection II - Statistics

Now that you know who you are, the next step will take nearly no time. The idea is simple; we will proceed with character statistics.

---

In Century City Unlimited, there are four character attributes:
• Strength - A measure of the character’s physical stamina, physical power and bulk, ability to lift, carry, and do damage
• Dexterity - A measure of the character’s physical agility, coordination, and manual dexterity
• Intelligence - A measure of the character’s mental capacity, acuity, and sense of the world
• Spirit - A measure of the character’s energy, vitality, and ability to resist disease

Normally these attributes begin at 10, representing typical human ability, but can go as low as one for nearly useless, to 20 (or higher) for superhuman power. Anything in the 8 to 12 range is considered to be in the “normal” (average) area for humans. Basic attribute scores of 6 or less are considered crippling — they are so far below the human norm that they are only used for severely handicapped characters. Scores of 15 or more are described as amazing — they are immediately apparent and draw constant comment.

---

You may alter your attributes however, you wish, but take note, that severely handicapping yourself may present serious and potentially fatal character flaws later on in the game world.

You have six free attribute points, these points may be deposited into any of the four attributes, furthermore you may also reduce your base score (10) to add additional points to any attribute you choose. But no matter what, 46 must be the sum of your four attributes.

---

Edit: I have officially renamed "Health" to "Spirit" as I feel that this encompasses and better describes the category a bit better.

Advetising?

Seriously? This is the advertisement that Google submitted to my Prelude post! Are you telling me that my writing is gay, Google?

Prelude: Century City Unlimited

The locale that this story takes place in is Century City a modern-day Mecca and those of the religious right consider it a veritable rebirth of Babylon. Some take that as a good thing, others not as much.

Century City boarders the Atlantic, and has a few large rivers that carve through its massive acreage, bringing trade and tourism on an hourly basis. Along with the massive shipping and import markets that burden the river-ways, Century City brings millions of dollars to the government via corporate agreements with the world’s largest multi-national conglomerates.

Besides the glimmering stars of industry, the fore-fathers of Century City would be proud to know the municipalities of this fair and wondrous city boast one of the world’s most recognized universities; Century City University.

CCU welcomes students from the four corners of the globe and it's all-star instructors have published or garnered so many publications that the Library of Congress bestowed an unprecedented recognition of this milestone upon the campus with a massive granite sculpture in the form of an open book slowly rotating upon it's axis, welcoming any who desire to learn.

All you currently are aware of is that one of the divisions of Amalgamated Industries, Inc. has been canvassing the campus as well as many affluent sections of Century City. Requesting any male or female, between the ages of 18 and 23, with a good bill of health, to participate in a medical study that offers many generous benefits to those selected. An offer like this does not come often to the student of CCU, and while you may or may not consider yourself an apt candidate, the promise of a two-year fully paid scholarship on top of a cash payment of five thousand dollars to those who are accepted, whet the appetite of the student body.

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Take some time to brainstorm, to dream, to imagine you as you might be in this world. It would be familiar to you were you to visit, it is very much the quintessence of the comic book mega-city.

Your journey begins now, player, and it have the potential to be a glorious or a devastating one depending on your choices. However, perhaps I get ahead of myself; let us begin from the beginning, which is an apt location, as the word suggests no better a place to have begun.

For the time being, make your dreams a reality, add flesh, and bone to those synaptic impulses, color, and texture to an otherwise bleak and vanilla-styled life. You have the opportunity those around you would dream of, total and ultimate control of your existence.

Remember age, ethnicity, physical build, and demeanor are valuable and ultimately will determine who you truly are. Design a rough estimate of your interests, your life goals, your likes and dislikes, and understand that the next step will require of you conviction and determination as you play a high-stakes bidding war against others to determine who can best fulfill their base desires.

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Post questions, requests, and if you so desire the shrowds of secrecy, contact me directly at dj.chair@gmail.com

A bit-o'-brainstorming in the morning

I've created this as a catch-all, sort of a place for those of you who may be interested in dropping ideas for what you'd like to see.

I've got a good deal already dreamed up, however nothing is written in stone... in fact, not much is written in anything; but I digress.

So please, if you feel the desire, help a brother out.

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The setting so far takes place in the modern world, probably around the year 200X, I picture the area to be a large cityscape (similar in ways to Gotham, or Metropolis from DC Comics) but with a certain darker coloring (a splash of the World of Darkness.)

The story, I'm going to play a little close to my vest for the moment. However, I will let this much out: It is unlikely that you will be embraced by your fellow citizens, it is unlikely that you will become "uber-powerful", and to survive you'll likely need to depend on one-another, albeit that may be easier said than done.

The mechanics of this game/setting/story are totally up in the air, I have experimented with a number of thoughts and none seem to work just right. I plan on this being very open-ended, and more role-played than roll-played, meaning that for the most part not a lot of numbers are going to be used to denote success or failure, healing or damage, etc.

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Edits/Clarifications:

1. Your character will possess special abilities, be them gifts or curses that is for you to decide.


2. These abilities are not hereditary but rather induced by "agents of change" which you will learn more about before the game begins, suffice to say, while you may possess some powers that are familiar to comic book fans, you will not fall into the more common origins of alien, mutant, etc.

Scene 14, closed: Golemachy

Two days after the fun in the temple, and things seem back to normal. At least, no one's come after anyone yet.

Moll is competing today in the under 30lbs division. Her strategy is pretty straight forward: a small metal homonculus, heated till it glows red, which she will control. She heard that her opponent, a transmuter, was going to be trying a light but hard wood for a material to give his golem a size advantage.

Varian is, of course, taking bets. He has the odds as 3:1 in favor of Moll.

Scene 13: Githtastic

Xilvin appears as Varian summons him.

"Well? You must have found something worth my attention by now. What is it?"

"The Gith, sir, the Prophet of the Empty Heavens, I've found out what he's doing. He's recruiting. He says it's a new faction, but the Defiers are helping him. He's staying with them in the Shattered Temple."

"A new faction? And the Defiers are helping? What is he recruiting them to do?"

"Kill a god."

Albearaca, the Dead City

Albearaca is a pitiful sight, crumbled shops and buildings on all sides, so ruined that it seems like they might collapse at a moment's notice. As your eyes scan the streets, you notice a few figures, perhaps human, perhaps orcish, or perhaps some other race, hiding in the dead stores. They might have been nomads, seeing this city as salvation from the wars of the larger cities, but Albearaca can by no means support them for long. Soon enough, they'll move out.

The arrangements are to meet in the old palace of Albearaca, to discuss future arrangements. Armies are to stay at least twenty miles from Albearaca during the talks, or it will be seen as a declaration of war.

The representative of Rem, Lord Azi, is wrapped in white silk, even down to his fingers, revealing only his tattooed head, scarred in resemblance to a skull. He carries two ornate daggers, quite possibly made from bone. He is accompanied by two guards, wrapped in grey silk and masked to look like demons, carrying spears.

The orcish representative, Chief Urin, wears a gold breastplate and carries a large, thin sword. His features are strangely human, he seems to have shaved and wrapped his hair into a ponytail. His guards are two orcs, less well groomed than their leader, and armed to the teeth.

Finally, the Lord Magi of Manna, Yuran, wears a crimson robe, adorned with black details. He carries a large, golden staff wears a variety of jewelry. Two, identically dressed guards accompany him, dressed in black robes and carry scroll cases on their belts.

Alright, go wild guys. Feel free to introduce your characters, describe them in as much detail as you want, interact with the PCs and NPCs.

Geography and Rules

Alright guys, here's what we've got for some geography of the content that you're all on. The Hizalacian Mountains, running from the Northeast to the Southwest of the continent, boast two cities. The brutal, religious city-state of Tarrask is to the south of Albearaca, a prominent player in the wars, who worship a destructive, self-indulgent diety known only as The Beast. Further north, only about twenty miles from Albearaca, is the trade city of Nicander, a relatively young city, built upon the ruins of Charillus, a long dead city. Nicander has managed to keep out of the wars, mostly, though their wealth has led to invasions. Many different races have taken residence in Nicander, giving it a reputation as a safe haven. Far to the north, in the deadly artic wastes, the mercenary city of Crimilia stands, on the only hospitipal patch of land in that area. Crimilia has sold their swords to many of the other nations, and avoided conflict on their own soil. They are known for their loyalty and skill both with steel and with magic.

In the desert of Aui to the south is the city of Rem, a religious people who worship death and destruction. They killed Albearaca's citizens, even when they took control of the city they spared no one. They have sworn to kill Tarrask, for reasons long since lost in history. They are known for being talented sorcerers, in addition to being ruthless warriors.

To the west of albearaca is an orcish nation, created when a roaming tribe discovered an abandoned city and took residence there. They once had a stated goal of killing every human, as penence for past sins, but have become far less radical and recent times. They are known for producing high-quality weapons, which fetch more than five times the price of normal swords.

Beyond the Hizalacian Mountains is the enchanted city of Mana. They have been known to develop new, powerful spells, and sell them to other nations, though they often engaged in wars themselves, in hopes of getting new magic.

Those are the main other cities. Though there are more, they are smaller, though they still will be represented at the peace meeting. Most of this is going to be handled like dan's game, atleast until you get involved in a war. Then, any parties involved will e-mail me their actions, I'll post what they see, and it will be resolved from their, with their respective military powers giving them certain advantages as I see fit. The economy score dictates the wealth of your country. While it also affects the wealth of your citizens, it gives you your starting treasury. Each nation gets ten-thousand gold pieces, per a point in economy, and five-hundred trained and armed men per a point of military.

All this sound good?

Introductions, all around

Alright, we're going to need a little backround information, in order to start this new game. The continent where this is now set is filled with city-states, none of which have ever got along. They have been at war, with atleast one other state, for as long as they can remember. Sharing the continent with you are some nomadic tribes, a handfull of outlying villages, but they are more property than anything else. They don't have rights, beyond which are granted by the fleeting kindness of whatever city-state happens to occupy them, and killing one off is seen more as an insult to their owners than a true crime. Only a year ago, by complete coincidence, have all of the city-states ended war, and there has been an uneasy peace since then. It was assumed that the peace would not last, and war would resume soon enough, but now that it has not, politics has come into play. "This was my territory", "You stole my resources", "We need compensation for losses in that war fifteen years ago" and other such complaints fill the air, and it is obvious that war will begin again, if something is not done.

In a last minute attempt to prevent another war, the nations have called together for a peace conference, in which all the leaders of the respective cities will gather. Each leader is allowed two guards, and any material objects they can carry, and will meet in the dead city of Albearaca.

In this scene, all you guys have to do is, when you are ready, post what the other cities (A.K.A. "players") know of yours. Feel free to go into as much detail as you like, invent past conflicts if you want, that sort of thing. Go wild. By the way, I apologise is the label is lame, it's all I could think of at the time. If you've got any better ideas, please, let me know

Hmm...

Do you think that adding a second game would slow the pace at all, or is the setup capable of dealing with it? These labels would make it easy to keep track of.

Also, would anyone else like to run a game here?

And another also, for the Hedgemere Academy game, I would like all three of you to give me a sample of a class lecture. You pick the class, of the ones you're taking, and the topic of the day's lecture. Doesn't have to be long, as I'll expand it as I see fit.

Scene 12, closed: Canas and the Dragon(snaps)

Canas has been pestering Gurg for some time now. Gurg is familiar with his difficulties and what Gurg considers his bad attitude.

"Look, I'd help you out, but there's not much here that I can give you. We have lots of things need doing, that's why they pay my salary, but not much for you. You could barely keep those gargoyles under control."

"Hey, they weren't where you said they'd be, and there were more of them, and they weren't in any mood to talk. They were about to kill that poor girl."

"She'd have been fine. And we didn't want them destroyed. Sand. Nice thinking, sand from rock, but there's no way we could recover them. That's why we've been having so much trouble with mischevious spirits lately. We should have billed you for them, but no, we paid you anyway.

"What is it you want out of magic? Did you go to the induction address? Where do you see your place? You should be finding your own way by now. Whatever. Here. The Head of Grounds needs someone to look after the garden. Weeding, pest control, harvesting alchemical components. You do that and you'll be fine. Just stay out of trouble. And if you can get us some new gargoyles, I'll see if I can find you something good."

Scene 11, closed: Lair of the Demon Spider, the Temple of Shit, and other charming travel destinations

Into Sigil, down an alley, and through a narrow wooden door with a cracked stone lintel. Three figures step out into hell, one of many. A desert spreads itself out in front of them, ashes for sand with only sharp crags of volcanic rock to provide any varriation.

Their destination is close, though not visible from their point of entry. A few mile hiking, brutal miles, and the world changes around them. Shaking the ashes from their robes, they take in their new surroundings. Vines everywhere, dark green and choking everything. Massive trees struggle to breathe through the vines. Sunlight has never seen this ground. Huge mosquitos compete to see which can suck the most blood from the travelers. Webs large enough to trap an ogre streach across the only things that might quallify as trails. At least one actually has trapped an ogre, while others are adorned with smaller humanoid shapes.

The phase spider Queen is near.